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Tina Guo

From HitStory, the pop encyclopedia of School of Rock · Artist

Tina Guo was born in Shanghai in 1985 and is a Chinese-American cellist and erhu player from San Diego. Her father was a concert cellist and her mother a concert violinist. She began piano at the age of three, moved with her family to the United States at five and received violin lessons there from her mother. Later she took up the cello. She has appeared as a soloist with symphony orchestras in San Diego, Greece and Brazil, among other places.

Music and breakthrough

Her first solo album was Autumn Winds in 2009, a classical new age record. Others followed, including The Journey, Eternity, Cello Metal in 2015, Game On! in 2017 and Dies Irae in 2021. She plays both acoustic and electric cello. Her videos stand out for their theatrical sets and exuberant costumes, and she combines genres. From 2011 to 2013 she toured as electric cellist with Cirque du Soleil's Michael Jackson: The Immortal World Tour. She also played with the Foo Fighters at the Grammy Awards and with Hans Zimmer.

Influence

Guo has played the cello in the music of many films, series and computer games, including Sherlock Holmes, Iron Man 2 and Diablo III, and above all the Wonder Woman theme in Batman v Superman, together with Zimmer. This has made her a familiar face of film music and game music. She has also played with metal bands such as Sabaton, and released a sample library that many composers use.

Listening

Listening tip. Listen to the Wonder Woman theme on electric cello and notice the raw, almost guitar-like sound of the instrument. Can you hear how the cello takes the place of a rock guitar here?

Discography

Studio albums

In School of Rock

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Categories: Artists